Darwin Escapes woodland Carbon Sequestration project

RPS conducted a biological carbon storage assessment for proposed new woodland planting at Darwin Escapes’ holiday parks across the UK.

Our team of carbon specialists undertook an extensive carbon assessment for each of Darwin’s sites, thereby quantifying the climate change benefits of implementing areas of new woodland on Darwin’s large estate. The results from the assessment can be used to inform Darwin’s low carbon strategy going forward and provide a positive message to take to shareholders and investors.

The project supplemented ongoing work being done by RPS ecologists in improving the biodiversity value of Darwin’s sites.

Challenge

As carbon emissions become an increasingly hot topic amongst shareholders and investors, companies must take action to minimise their contribution to global warming and maximise their contribution to meeting the UK Government’s climate targets.

The UK Government signed up to the Paris Agreement in 2015, and in 2019 amended its carbon reduction target to a goal of a 100% of emissions by 2050. We are seeing – and can expect to see more in the future - increasingly stringent climate-related legislation being imposed upon businesses.

As a result of these evolving market and legislative conditions, the financial risks to businesses posed by climate change are increasing. As such companies are increasingly looking toward net zero carbon strategies as a means of future proofing their organisation.

Darwin Escapes, as a large land holding client, worked with RPS’ Landscape and Ecology teams to implement new woodland planting as a means of improving the amenity and ecological value of their site, and were hoping this may also have value in their developing low carbon strategy.

Solution

Through carbon sequestration, trees store carbon in biomass above and below ground, thereby removing carbon from the atmosphere over their lifetime. Establishing new woodland provides a net sink in terms of atmospheric carbon levels.

The carbon storage (or sequestration) potential of trees is highly dependent on a number of factors including species, climate, soil type etc. RPS’ carbon specialists were provided with species planting mixes for Darwin’s holiday parks across the UK, and – using the Forest Commission-developed Woodland Carbon Code (WCC) calculator – we were able to accurately quantify the expected carbon benefits of the implementation of this proposed woodland planting.

Our team analysed the potential carbon storage impact of implementing 6.85 ha of new woodland planting at various sites across the UK, estimating that up to 3,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide could be sequestered over a 100-year period.

In doing so, we were able to advise Darwin on the extent to which establishing the planned woodland planting would support them to reduce their carbon footprint. It gives a positive message to take back to shareholders and investors, by showing them what steps they have been taking (and the impact these steps have had) to increase their resilience to the legislative and market risks posed by climate change. It also provided Darwin with a greater understanding of what further steps needed to be taken in the future.